Transformers Dark of the Moon : Total Eclipse
by Attila-the-Hun
Summary: It is three years since the execution of The Fallen and Megatron's disappearance. The Autobots protect humanity from any new threats, while the Decepticons, scattered, search for a new weapon that will put an end to Autobots on Earth...one by one.
1. Demolition

_Decepticon _

Across the skies of Michigan, a falling shape appeared, burning the upper atmosphere. The object seemed to gain velocity as it fell, the spikes on the edges overheating as it passed over the town of Pontiac. If anyone had looked up just then, they would have thought a meteor was descending from the cosmos.

The object hit an outbuilding at very high velocity, shattering the human construct into pieces of dust and rubble. Somewhere in the street at its side, a car alarm went off. A tree cracked and fell as wires broke and snaked across the street, sparking. There was the far-off sound of sirens, and a human voice talking over a phone, and then silence.

From the ruined mass of the building, a silver Mercedes SUV with a strange number plate pulled out, reversing. There was no driver to be seen at the wheel of the vehicle. The SUV stopped at the end of the street, and waited.

Unseen to the human or physical eye, a message was being sent from the Mercedes SUV to Dylan Gould of Hotchkiss-Gould Investments. The message simply read:

"_Soundwave has landed. Proceeding to objective location._"

The SUV pulled away at an incredible scene as emergency services reached the building it had emerged from, and red lights disappeared into the darkness of the suburbs.

* * *

><p><em>Detroit City, Michigan.<em>

The very same Mercedes SUV 2011 made Its way through the daytime traffic of Detroit city. The buildings rose high on either side, some of old French design, due to the many French settlers. But the population of the city had began falling. The SUV slowed as the stoplights changed to red. The wait.

The lights converted to amber, and then to green, and the SUV continued its progress. Far overhead, the faint sound of thunder reverberated through the sky.

The thunder became the roar of engines as an F-22 Raptor crossed Lake Huron at an incredible speed, tearing the air in two. The F-22 Raptor had strange markings on it's upper body, some resembled Arabic letters, while the others resembled Cyrillic letters. Underneath all of these alien designs, was an American Air Force symbol.

The afterburners roared as it began descending, passing over the highway the SUV was traversing. The SUV took a sharp turn and descending into a sea of office buildings that had been abandoned for security purposes.

The SUV paused by a carpark, and slowly began folding and twisting into a humanoid robotic form, spinning around on its hands like an experienced break-dancer. The faint sounds of radio music were heard as the chassis of the car covered the frame, and the Transformer stood.

The front wheels of the SUV folded behind his head and the arms were long, nearly reaching the ground. The armor was silver and durable. On the Decepticon's forearms were slightly glowing blue sonic disks, a powerful weapon if charged. Below the spiked design and four piercing red optics was an almost-human mouth.

The Decepticon drew his gaze up as the F-22 Lockheed Martin circled above the multistory car park and then dropped out of the sky, shifting out of a vehicle into a humanoid form. The Decepticon landed and rubble hit the pavement below. The Decepticon had a triangular-shaped main body, long arms and sinister-looking red optics. The markings on the upper body of the F-22 alternate form now became tattoos on the Decepticon's body. The afterburners were stowed on the Decepticon's back.

The Decepticon shifted and spoke in a slightly-electronic strained English accent. "Soundwave!" The other Decepticon below answered flatly. "Starscream." Soundwave's voice was very bass heavy, deep, seeming to travel through the ground.

"Megatron has ordered a two-fold assault on Detroit. Mixmaster is in charge of one of them..." Mixmaster was one of the surviving Constructicons. "...But I am to lead the other, an attack on the closest NEST facility. You are to create a diversion."

NEST, Non-Biological Extraterrestrial Species Treaty was the human/Autobot special forces organization that worked to eliminate Decepticons hiding on Earth. They had done a good job of it so far: Override, Sideways, Demolishor, Duststorm, even Prowl had been eliminated, from what he knew.

"Explain this diversion."  
>"You must create chaos and wreak havoc in the adjacent industrial park." Starscream inhaled viciously. "And if any of Optimus Prime's inner circle show up...neutralize them."<p>

Soundwave froze; he had been waiting for Starscream to act above himself. He raised his arm to the second-in-command Decepticon. "You are not authorized to give this order."

Starscream paused, and then slammed his arm into the building: his patience had deteriorated in the past months. "The order comes from _Megatron_! If you doubt my word...you can take it up with him directly!" Starscream yelled.

This, however, failed to have the desired effect on the communication's officer, who just retorted with "The order will be validated...later."

This annoyed the already irate Starscream even more. "You just wait, Soundwave. You'll regret talking to me that way when I lead the Decepticons!" Revealing his traitorous ambition, Starscream jumped off the carpark, flipping into F-22 form and powering the afterburners. Several windows in building shattered and Starscream disappeared.

Soundwave transformed back into the Mercedes SUV, folding into vehicular form in distorted radio tunes, and drove away at high speed towards the industrial park adjacent to the NEST base.

It did not take long to reach the industrial park. The entrance was a plethora of brown and red-brick buildings that rose up from dusty ground. Soundwave kept his back to the NEST base, and transformed, using a close building as a cover. He paused and looked out into the courtyard.

The courtyard was devoid of life. No strange organic forms or humans that Soundwave had observed for so long. He gaze upwards, mouth closed and optics revolving as he looked up at the radio tower that was there. He jumped onto one of the lower buildings, and climbed up under the tower. He was going to bring the Autobot and NEST forces straight to him.

He seized both left and right supports of the radio tower, and tendrils of black and red snaked out under his armour and penetrated the steel of the tower, sending glowing wires into the wires within. Blue energy surged through the sonic disks and he scanned through the matrix of communications, landing within NEST's network.

And there, he planted a virus.

A NEST operative sat in a leather chair, keeping a close eye on the monitors. His name was , he was a technician for NEST. Nothing of interest had happened in the past couple of months, the sightings on Decepticons had dramatically declined. One-by-one, they had hunted down Decepticons hiding in Australia, Japan, China, the States, and Western Europe, one-by-one killing them off and sending their corpses to rest in the Laurentian Abyss.

But suddenly the monitors flickered and static resounded through the room. From the office behind, the door opened and General Morshower stepped out. "Status?" He asked authoritatively.

"Sir, our systems are down!" Kruger said, getting up out of his chair and looking all around the room. Everywhere, the expensive displays were static.

"Give me a sit rep now. I want to know why we have the latest in gear from our government, and it just shuts down like this." Morshower ordered curtly.

"A very powerful grade-11 security breach has been performed via a virus that is unknown on Earth. The signal emanated from an abandoned industrial facility in Detroit City. Should we mobilize, sir?" Kruger said, stood at attention in the eyes of his commander.

"No, it could just be solved from-" the commander was cut off as the monitors flickered back into life, all of them showing a silver-armored Decepticon loomed over them, glowing in blue. The Decepticon revealed what looked to be a plasma version of a Skorpion vz.61, a Czechoslovakian sub-machine gun.

"Sir, do we have permission to contact and mobilize Michigan-based NEST forces?"  
>"You have the green light to engage." Morshower said.<p>

* * *

><p>Soundwave had converted back to SUV form, and was waiting amid a contingent of stationary trucks and service vans. He dulled his Energon signal, and within the confines of the SUV he observed a map of the industrial park. It looked like he was going to have to get to the other side of the park, where a lot of construction had taken place. But first, he would wait until the first NEST team showed up to search for him.<p>

It didn't take long. Several NEST humvees pulled up at the entrance to the carpark he hid in. He scanned the map and found sound of a lot of other unarmed vehicles, but these were the only NEST vehicles in the area. His sound sensors picked up the faint sound of Mixmaster, transforming in plain view.

He could hear the NEST soldiers, taking up position. Their backs were to him, they were focused on a grey sportscar on the other side of the carpark, in the shadow of the office building. Minutes passed...

Soundwave converted, breaking out of the SUV form and spinning on his hands. The NEST soldiers exclaimed and took cover by the humvees as the gunners opened fire. All of the shots missed and Soundwave spun around and punched a van, sending it through several of the NEST vehicles. They exploded into flames and Soundwave went on the run, throwing the vehicles out of the way and sprinting through them. The devastated NEST unit didn't even have time to turn, let alone pursue.

He heard them calling for reinforcements as he sprinted over into the power plant section. He wondered at what reinforcements there were, but then was visually answered as two of the vehicles he had scanned transformed...into Autobot soldiers. They took on the form of special law enforcement vehicles.

He supercharged the sonic disks on his arms, and released the energy. The blue wave of plasma surged through the ground, ripping the earth open, and sending the Autobot soldiers into pieces. Parts of exoskeleton clattered across the ground, and Soundwave converted once again, accelerating away from the charred tarmac.

Inside, he projected a map, and located several stacks that could be attacked to gain attention from the Autobots. He located one very close by and went into Stealth Form. The wheels extended outwards and a multitude of miniguns flipped out from the roof, doors, and bonnet. Soundwave open-fired, sending a stream of missiles into the stack. Cracks ran through the stonework, and the stack began leaning to one side.

Soundwave drove through the falling rubble onto the next fuel stack, kicking up dust. He could detect more Autobots incoming from the direction of the smoke stack, and transformed once more, rolling across the floor in a shower of sparks and drawing a Skorpion. He was looking onto a road under an overpass. Two Autobots appeared in the overpass, one rolling out of vehicle form to be met with a furious hail of plasma rounds.

He got past the other Autobot easily and sprinted past a dusty area of towers, transforming back into the SUV as several helicopters past overhead. Soundwave guessed they were NEST and went into a secure area, where wires and pipes connected the buildings on either side of him. Another stack was sending pillars of smoke reaching into the dust-coloured sky above.

"This will be appropriated." Soundwave said, basscore voice booming. He could sense a lot of NEST vehicles and reinforcements coming his way. He left the shadow of the road and drove into the other office sector of the industrial park. There, he spun out of vehicle form and climbed the nearest, shattering several of the windows. Below, humans exclaimed and ran to their vehicles.

He knew exactly what Mixmaster was doing: He was bringing the Constructicons back online: Long Haul, Scrapper, Hightower, Overload, Rampage, Scavenger. With them, they would combine to create Devastator: one of their most powerful weapons. The other version of Devastator would be impossible to make, as the components Demolishor, Skipjack, Scrapmetal, and the other Constructicons had been put permanently offline.

Soundwave jumped onto the pylon connecting him to the other building across the river flowing into Lake Michigan, and then slid down across the wires, sparks raining into the water below. On the other side, he definitely jumped off. He looked over his shoulder to see NEST and law enforcement helicopters circling the area had been in moments before.

His optics revolved and he hacked into the soundwaves resonating from every crevice. **"The Decepticon target was last seen here..." "His alternate form is a Mercedes SUV 2011 model in silver. Keep close eyes." **He jumped off the building, and upon impact, he converted, accelerating towards the exit.

There, he stopped, and got into contact with Starscream. "Objectives completed. Diversion set. You are free to engage NEST facility." He sensed Starscream was overhead, in the skies, but there was no reply.

His attention was seized by several 2011 Cherokee SUVs as they screeched around the corner of another power-plant and transformed, opening fire. Soundwave rolled backwards, Skorpions already in both hands, and let the energy loose.

The Autobot nearest him took the hits and dived back into cover. Soundwave sensed three of them, armed with plasma machine guns and sabot round cannons. He heard them speaking in Cybertronian and English; none of Optimus Prime's 'Inner Circle' were present. These were just Autobot soldiers. This meant well for Soundwave; he did not have to play to Starscream's wishes.

He charged up his sonic disks, this time for a different attach. The air became charged, dense, and then it exploded, deafening the Autobots. One of them stumbled out of cover, bleeding Energon out of his sound sensors. As soon as he saw Soundwave, he raised his weapons.

Soundwave disposed of all three Autobots, damaging the power-plant in the process. Smoke raised up to the sky, as if to bring it down, and fires raged around the remains. The flames lit Soundwave's back as he transformed: the diversion had been set.


	2. Desperation Play

_Decepticon_

_Detroit City, Michigan_

In the distance, the sound of explosions drifted close and then away. The panicked voices of many people could be heard, the law enforcement of Detroit doing their best to calm the situation and keep the pedestrians under control. The National Guard had been called in to help the full-scale evacuation from the city. Smoke was still rising from the industrial park that Soundwave had attacked, and NEST forces were diverting their attention to that location.

A shadow flitted in an alley between two buildings. The only discernible feature was the four glowing red optics centred in the figures head. The shadow stopped near a grass area where police cars had been abandoned, and waited, crouched like a predator.

A Carbon Motors E7 Detroit Police Car pulled away from the scene, blue poly-rhythms shining through its black design before disappearing into a big car park area east of his position. At that moment, an F-22 Raptor with Cybertronian tattoos dropped out of the sky and slammed into the car park.

The Decepticon Dread came out of vehicular form and bounced across the floor, bring himself to one knee before Starscream. His metal dreadlocks and tentacles flicked back and forth angrily. He spoke first.

"What did you do that for?" His voice was harsh and his English seemed stunted.  
>"I don't have time to deal with your questions, Crowbar. Listen closely..."<p>

Starscream loomed over the Dread, but both were as intimidating as each other. Crowbar was part of an elite team of six Dreads: Crankcase, Hatchet, Dirtbag, Hooligan, and Dreadwind. Dreads were the elite assassin unit of the Decepticon army. They were lethal and skilled in combat and were extremely resourceful. They had an army of Enforcers and Assaulters.

Crowbar had four optics and mandibles like some kind of horrific predator or beast, and his most intimidating feature: the snapping dreadlocks that extended from his head. And his best skill was breaking and entering. "Could have just sent me a comm. This is a waste of time."

"Pay attention!" Starscream snapped. "You are to create a distraction around the stadium. All Autobot attention must be diverted from the NEST facility." Starscream projected a hologram of the city, a 3D map, and marked out the objective location.

"You shouldn't get so worked up, Starscream. You'll blow a gasket." Crowbar said, not interesting in what he had to do, but more interested in irritating Starscream. The tactic seemed to work, as Starscream lost it and punched a car out of the way. It's alarm went off as it bounced along the car parin sparsk. Starscream drew his saw and sliced another three cars in half and spat.

"Worked. UP?! I speak for Lord Megatron, you pile of junk! You will obey me!" Starscream yelled.  
>Crowbar didn't so much as flinch. "Sure thing, Lord Starscream." The Dread laughed, and the sound came out as a metallic scraping sound heavily remixed by expensive electronics. Starscream flinched at the sound, and gunned his afterburners to get away from the car park, away from Crowbar.<p>

* * *

><p>Crowbar slowed and stopped by the railings that separated him from the lapping waters of Lake Michigan. A cold wind blew across the water and the sky became overcast. He sensed Autobots guarding the radar on the other street. He extended his claws and started climbing up the building slowly.<p>

He got to the roof, and walked slowly and soundlessly to the edge. He saw three Autobots guarding a radar/satellite dish below. None had noticed him. He silently drew both plasma claw blasters, and before any noticed, he jumped down and opened fire. His expert shots blinded one Autobot and decapitated the other.

He landed, cracking the tarmac beneath him, and shot again, knocking the blinded Autobot back in the water. The Autobot didn't resurface, so Crowbar guessed his circuits had overcharged in the earthen fluid. Crowbar's attention was snatched as a bigger Autobot came from behind the radar and opened fire with a shotgun, the shot lodging into Crowbar's shoulder.

Crowbar jumped in the air deftly, drawing a spiked weapon and landed on the Autobot's shoulders. The Autobot raised the shotgun and fired, and Crowbar dropped down and slammed the spiked weapon into the Autobot's knee joint. Energon bled out of the wound and Crowbar brought a knife across the Autobot's neck, sending the Autobot to the floor. A part of the car door came off and slid across the ground. Crowbar retracted the weapons, dreadlocks flicking, and approached the radar.

He knew that hacking into the radar would distract the Autobots and bring them all to his location...and they would find nothing. His tentacles-like dreadlocks ripped the covers off the radars base, and jammed into the wires, hacking it. The hack only took seconds and already he could detect a big Autobot presence.

With a clanging sound of metal on metal, he transformed into the Carbon Motors E7 police car and took the abandoned street towards the football stadium, mirror-like buildings rising high into the grey sky.

Autobots turned as they heard the engine, and one walked up as the CME7 police car pulled up. _Crowbar knew he would have to kill them before entering the stadium, to reduce the risk of reinforcements. _But the Autobot had been fooled by Crowbar's disguise. Within his vehicular form, Crowbar projected the holograph of a human police officer. The window wound down and the Autobot spoke.

"Where are you going, human? Optimus Prime has given us orders to make sure that every human gets out of here alive. It includes the local law enforcement."  
>Crowbar spoke through the human holograph. "What are you hiding?" He then paused, and chose other words. "There maybe humans taking refuge in the stadium. If you would allow me through to grant them safe passage."<p>

This time the Autobot paused, deep in thought. His blue optics pierced through the holograph, not detecting the presence beneath. The Autobot turned and called a soldier wielding a shotgun over. The Autobot ran over, and stood to attention. Crowbar knew what he was going to say before he spoke.

"We have several Autobots within the stadium, there is-" Crowbar's doors started shifting and the arms broke out, holding bladed spears. The leader began to turn, ordering the turrets to open fire. Crowbar seemed to loom over them, the long dreadlocks extending and snapping. Before the Autobot had fully turned, he threw the spear and tore open the Autobot's throat.

The leader fell, bleeding the blue liquid that was Energon. Crowbar turned and threw the other spear, impaling another Autobot against a glass building. The glass shattered as the Autobot struggled. Like a deadly, trained acrobat, Crowbar jumped high over the turrets and drew both Cybertronian blasters and fired on them. The human weapons exploded into fragments and as soon as Crowbar hit the ground, the impact jolted him into transformation.

Several grenades rolled out in the path of those who pursued him towards the Detroit Stadium. All over the stadium were posters of Detroit Lions, the city's beloved team. The bombs exploded into blue plasma, ripping through the Autobots' legs. He entered the cool dark interior of the passage leading into the stadium, gunning his engines.

He entered the oval interior of the stadium, ripping up the astroturf in which so many players had struggled. Two radar dishes had been quickly constructed, behind the goal zones on each side. Crowbar transformed, sliding around in an explosion of grass. The opposition came swiftly.

One Autobot dropped down from the podium directly opposite the passage, another came from behind the touchdown zone on his right. The podium Autobot swung for him while the other opened fire. Crowbar dodged the shots with ease and took on the Autobot who had jumped from the commentary podium. The Autobot drew the gun on the slightly smaller Dread, who extended a Cybertronian knife and jammed it into his throat. The Autobot's finger pulled the trigger and Crowbar kicked the aim onto the other Autobot.

With the guardians of the stadium disposed of, Crowbar approached the first radar on the right side of the stadium, crushing the spectator seats beneath is feet. The first radar clattered into pieces when he climbed onto the platform. He realized there was nothing to find in the network as he scanned the other radar. He found out that the law enforcement Autobots were 'drones' called Omnibots.

He dropped down into the centre of the stadium, and listened. All transmissions from Mixmaster had gone dead. The last transmissions Crowbar had intercepted indicated that Mixmaster had 'neutralized' Ratchet and was locked in battle with the Autobot weapon's specialist Ironhide. But the sound of heavy feet hitting tarmac made him crouch like a predator and then he looked towards the passage to see a heavily armoured figure coming straight for him: Ironhide.

Crowbar took two steps backwards, drawing both Cybertronian blasters. Ironhide would not be an easy opponent, certainly not to fight or escape from. Both blasters extended to support heavier blaster fire. Crowbar would have to be quick to avoid the black-armoured Autobot.

Ironhide entered, two flintlock-like cannons on his back. His blue optics met the four of Crowbar's. "Punkass Decepticon." Crowbar howled like an animal, the howl echoing through the stadium eerily. And then two cannons revolved on Ironhide's forearms, spinning and ignited.

Decepticon sources had stated that Ironhide had lost these cannons in the airstrike that had ended the Constructicon drones in Egypt. But obviously the sources had been wrong. Ironhide snorted and raised his arms.

Orbs of plasma thundered towards Crowbar and he jumped, opening fire. the staccato sound of his Cybertronian blasters tore into the armor of Ironhide, but with no visible damage. The shots fired by Ironhide tore into the spectator-commentary podium behind Crowbar, tearing through the steel and seats.

Missile launchers flipped out on Crowbar's shoulders and he fired a hail, distracted Ironhide long enough to go for the exit passage. He had been told to divert the attention of the NEST forces, but he had not expected one of Prime's inner circle. He transformed and shot across the car park in front of the stadium, past the dead chassis of the Autobot sentries had killed.

NEST vehicles broke out their pursuit, with several Humvees. Crowbar swerved across the empty streets, and saw pedestrians up ahead. He slid to a halt and took a side street, knowing NEST would have to break off the pursuit to help the civilians. he appeared onto a different avenue, in time to feel a black GMC Topkick C4500 pickup hit him hard.

The impact sent him spinning out of vehicle form and dashed him against the ground. He slid across the tarmac, armour broken. Coolant spilled from his mouth briefly as he struggled up to glare at Ironhide. Even his sight sensors weren't functioning effectively. But he glared at Ironhide with deep malice and his mandibles extended viciously.

"This isn't over, punk. I've known enough of your kind to know you're just as weak as the rest." Ironhide said. He spoke with a British accent. Crowbar's optics rested on an overturned, ruined car and then back on Ironhide. His clawed hands curled.

Ironhide pulled the big flintlock weapons off his back. These were the MechTech prototypes known as 'Heavy Iron 2.0' and could devastate even the thickest of armour, and that is something that Crowbar didn't have. He desired flexibility over endurance. Far above, the sky had darkened and rain came down. Smoke rose up into the skies.

Something came over Crowbar's radio channel; a notification from Starscream. "Mixmaster has failed, but my attack on the NEST base has been successful. We know enough detail to mount our offensive. Meet me on the outskirts of this city...Lord Megatron will be interested. Then, I will speak with our asset." With that, the channel went dead.

Ironhide raised both of the Heavy Irons and fired. Crowbar picked up the car and threw it into the path of the warheads, detonating the car into fragments in a bright explosion. Ironhide covered his face, but when he looked back up Crowbar had disappeared.

* * *

><p>The CME7 police car stopped inside a big office building. Here, he transformed, folding out of his vehicular form. His optics were fully back online, and he inspected damage in the reflection of the window. Out of it, he could see the damaged maw of Detroit, devastated and ruined by their attack. Crowbar crouched, and whipped around, tentacle-like dreadlocks snapping when he saw Soundwave walk out of the darkness with Laserbeak perched on his arm.<p>

He had seen the glow of the disks and the optics long before he had seen the silver armour of the communication's officer. The robotic hawk that was Laserbeak chittered and laughed, seeing Crowbar crouched like a demon. Both of the Decepticons heard the sound of afterburners and turned as Starscream made his entry.

"They have been looking for us." He said, throwing the dead body of an Omnibot to the floor. Laserbeak flitted down and rested on the disfigured head. Starscream's fingers clicked; he seem to be filled with glee. "They have recruited more Autobots to their filthy cause. It seems that the deaths of Jolt, their fem-bots designated Arcee unit, and those idiotic Twins meant nothing to them."

Starscream projected information onto the inner wall of a building. It had once been a cafe and office building. "These new units are designated Warpath, Mirage, and the Wreckers: Roadbuster, Topspin and Leadfoot. We don't know the location of the Wreckers, but they are nothing more than foolish engineers for the wrong cause. Prime's _inner circle _include Ratchet, Jolt, Ironhide, Sideswipe, and that mute imbecile _Bumblebee_." Starscream spat the name, and Crowbar's mandibles clicked at the mention of an Autobot he wanted to be rid of.

"They are contrite in hunting down and slaughtering the members of our kind, but soon, they will become the hunted. The Autobots will feel what it is to be betrayed, to be hunted, to be broken apart! The humans will lose their trust in them, just as our human allies did...we have enough assets to spearhead Operation Pillar." The projections dissipated into thin air.

"These assets include Barricade, Lockdown, Crankcase, Hatchet, Dirtbag, Dreadwind, Hooligan and our army of Enforcers and Assaulters. The Constructicons served their purpose well; they were nothing but sacrifices to the Autobots." Crowbar bristled, believing that Starscream also meant that _he _was expendable too. Soundwave spoke over Starscream.

"They were useful. You were not authorized to secure their sacrifice. This will be dealt with on completion of mission." The communication's officer said flatly. Laserbeak flitted back onto his master's arm. Starscream bristled visibly, ready to hit either Soundwave or Crowbar. But this time he managed to get his irate mood under control.

"Optimus Prime is looking for us. I will tell my asset to keep him busy while we escape. We can't risk confrontation with Prime. We will meet north of here, across the border." Starscream said, all the time keeping his optics firmly planted on Soundwave.

"Is there anything else?" snarled Crowbar. Starscream turned on the Dread. "Nothing you should know yet, now move it!" With that, Starscream smashed the glass windows and disappeared into the skies.


	3. Shipping Out

_Decepticon_

_Detroit City, Michigan_

The docks were briefly bathed in sunshine. It was situated far from the chaos of the city, away from the devastation. Along the empty road from the city came a black and green Lamborghini Aventador, heavily spiked on the front bumper, lights and grilled. In the centre of the road, Starscream awaited him.

The Lamborghini slowed down and stopped, and spun around in a flurry of armour and weapons. And from it stood the bounty-hunter Lockdown.

The Cybertronian Bounty-Hunter had joined up to the Decepticons, but had not taken part in the war that had destroyed Cybertron. His right hand ended in a lethal hook made of Cybertronian steel, and his optics were green; strange for a Cybertronian. Many weapons could be seen on his back: an assault rifle, and spark extractor spear. For his alternate form, he was unnaturally tall, but still not as tall as Starscream.

"Lockdown...Megatron has ordered you to infiltrate the nearby NEST warehouse."  
>The bounty hunter shifted, his hand closing. "Finally, something that plays to my strengths."<br>"Hack the NEST super-computer, and look for anything involving Shockwave or Operation Pillar."  
>"And, any Autobots who interfere?"<br>"Feel free to neutralize them."

Lockdown extended his hook. "On my way." And with that, he was in vehicle mode and gone, further into the docks to search for the super-computer. Starscream slowly smiled. Lockdown was the only Decepticon Starscream could relate to. He did everything with quick precision, and also cared about the consequences by asking the right questions. Something Megatron always overlooked. Starscream jumped into the air, becoming an F-22 Raptor once more, and flew away into the blue and white skies.

* * *

><p>Lockdown watched the street of warehouses very carefully. He knew Earthen hours well and knew that the sun would be close to setting. He also knew Optimus was here: this is why he had asked Starscream for confirmation to kill. His green optics narrowed in the shadow of one of the warehouses, containing ship parts.<p>

Autobot soldiers were patrolling the streets, checking the shadows and looking up into the sky. Down at the edge of the street Lockdown picked up the sound of Optimus Prime's voice, and then he saw the Autobot leader.

Optimus Prime stood tall over his fellow Autobots, his alternate form being a Peterbilt 379 with blue, red and silver armor and bright flames, and also with a Canadian number-plate . Optimus' face mask was retracted, and Lockdown saw his target's mouth moving, giving orders.

The Autobot soldiers moved out and Lockdown devised a plan in his thought sensors. There were many Autobots coming and going, in different vehicle forms. Some were differently coloured, but most of the others were law enforcements. Lockdown knew he didn't have the appearance of a stereotypical Decepticon, so he could approach the leader without him suspecting.

Lockdown drove towards the leader, who he noted looked distracted, and transformed. _Distracted enough to be killed now. _Optimus turned to address who he believed was a soldier. "Autobot, report."

Lockdown spoke in a strained voice to the Prime. "No more sign of any Decepticons, sir."  
>Optimus appeared to think. Maybe it was the appearance<p>

"What is your name, Autobot?"

The bounty hunter was caught off-guard by Prime's direct question, and this must have showed in Lockdown's body language, for Optimus turned his full attention on the bounty hunter. Lockdown guessed he would have to strike within the next few seconds. But he couldn't resist telling the target the name of the person who would tear the title of Prime away from him.

"My name's Lockdown. And when you see me, your life is over."

The hook-hand extended and before Optimus knew what was going to happen, Lockdown had thrown the Autobot leader through a building. The warehouse collapsed into dust and Optimus was up. Lockdown used his hook to latch onto an exposed girder and drove both feet into Optimus, sparks flying off his armour when he hit the floor again.

"Autobots, I am under attack from a Decepticon asset called Lock-" Lockdown hooked Prime again before he could finish the message and slammed his face into the floor. This time, Optimus had time to react, punching Lockdown upwards through the ceiling. Lockdown was stranded in a mess of cables, and he watched Optimus escape through the smashed wall, starting a transmission to the other Autobots.

"Lockdown has been apprehended. He is an unknown Cybertronian and could prove valuable to our cause. He could be looking to hack our supercomputer. He must not find what is stored in the files. Apprehend him at all costs, but do not kill. We don't know his strengths. Prime, out."

Lockdown, enraged, ripped his way out of the sparking cables and landed deftly: he was going to kill Prime, today. Several Autobot soldiers raised their weapons on him as he exited the ruined warehouse, and he threw down a plasma grenade, and jumped impossibly high.

The grenade went off in a burst of blue. grey and orange light, shredding the Autobot soldiers into pieces. He landed amid the charred, broken chassis of many Autobots, and transformed. The sunlight hit the body of his vehicular form in the way that made him look almost...invisible. His engine roared and he raged in pursuit of Optimus Prime, into the docks of Detroit.

"Lockdown to Starscream, send in Enforcers for back up. Now! In pursuit of Optimus Prime!"  
>"Do NOT deviate from your objectives!" Starscream warned.<br>"You'll have your data, _Starscream_. I need the Autobot forces distracted. Send in reinforcements..."  
>"You will not disobey me!"<br>"I'm not. I'm re-prioritizing."  
>"Fine. Distraction being sent to your last known location."<p>

Lockdown used his rearview mirrors to see a group of Autobot soldiers bearing down on him. Not far in front, Optimus was in Peterbilt 379 form, pulling away. Lockdown continued looking into the rearview mirror to see a monstrous, dreadlocked Cybertronian form, running on fours like a dog, burst through a boathouse into the path of the pursuit.

He recognized it to be an Assaulter, one of the Dreads modelled after Dirtbag/Hatchet. It's alternate form was NEST armoured vehicle, and it was pure black. The beast roared and floored one of the Autobots, bleeding Energon. This was the last of the Assaulter Lockdown saw before turning a corner.

Lockdown brought up a map as he continued his pursuit of the Autobot leader. Prime was leading him right to the warehouse where the NEST supercomputer was housed: this would make his job a lot easier. Lockdown accelerated, homing in on his target.

Optimus broke out of vehicle form less than 50 metres away from Lockdown's position. _What is he doing? _Lockdown thought. The parts of the car shifted and assault rifles appeared and opened fire. Shells bounced along the floor in Lockdown's wake, but Prime had utilized his shield for defensive measures.

When he was less than 20 metres away, Lockdown transformed. The transformation seemed slower than usual, as he landed on his hands and bent through the air in an attempt to right himself. This was met by the extreme force of Optimus' shield.

Lockdown grunted, parts flying off his body as he was jettisoned through the air into a shipping crane. The crane came down under Lockdown's velocity and he fell with it. The crane slammed into the nearby freight ship with a deafening sound that reverberated through his sound sensors. He hooked onto the now horizontal crane with his hook, and dropped down to his feet. He could feel the hot liquid of Energon leaking out of the side of his face and the right side of his body.

"Prime!" Lockdown roared, enraged. The Autobot leader's response was to draw both Ion cannons, and open fire. The storm of shells rained down on where Lockdown had once stood, destroying the tarmac and tearing the ground apart into fire. Optimus lowered his smoking Ion cannons, and walked into the plumes of smoke and fire.

Lockdown swung into Optimus' face, breaking the face mask. Optimus dropped both Ion cannons in surprise and stumbled backwards, drawing an Energon blade and Energon hook. Lockdown was full into a ferocious attack, drawing the bladed weapon on his left hand.

Optimus ducked under the blade but was caught by the hook, getting thrown into the ship which shifted at its berth. The chains strained and one caught Optimus as he went to swing his own hook at the bounty hunter. Lockdown slammed a foot down on his hand and broke the hook, spurring Optimus to thrust his blade up toward's Lockdown's face. Lockdown kicked his arm down and picked him back up with the hook, jamming it under the chest armour

Optimus was bleeding coolant and Energon from the encounter. Lockdown parried Optimus' left-hand blade with his hook and blade, missing Optimus' right hand hook, which caught him in the face. Lockdown snarled and struggled as the hook bored a scar in his face. He kicked the Prime, sent a punch upward, and then sent him back into the water.

He slowly approached the dock edge, seeing his blurred shadow reflected in the murky waters. The Autobot leader did not resurface, not matter how long Lockdown waited. With Optimus disposed of, Lockdown turned and entered the warehouse. Unmanned NEST vehicles lay parked elegantly on either side, but Lockdown's optics rested on the supercomputer, his footfalls bringing him a step closer to what lay inside the network.

The supercomputer was a massive screen hidden within the maw of many wires and tubes. He extended his hook hand and jammed it into the console under the screen, and began hacking, sifting through the information. Somewhere else, Soundwave activated and fought the firewalls that kept appearing.

And then he found what he was looking for, and a lot more. The gravity of what he had seen within the network almost physically knocked him down. He siphoned the information into his memory sensors and then turned to leave, looking at the NEST vehicles parked. He drew his assault rifle, and opened fire, destroying the vehicles.

He left the blackened building behind, and transformed, lit by fire from behind. With his work done, and Optimus Prime disposed of, he drove back into the devastated city of Detroit.

* * *

><p>From the waters arose Optimus Prime, barely damaged, even by the water. "Ratchet, I'm still online, and coming back into our base. The Decepticons are definitely up to something, and whatever it is, we have to stop them. Prime, out."<p>

A silver Chevrolet Corvette Stingray approached from where the Assaulter had slaughtered many Autobot soldiers and disappeared. The Assaulter's name had been Dirtbag. The Corvette Stingray elegantly transformed into the sleek, skating shape of the Autobot melee officer Sideswipe, who spoke with a French accent. "Optimus, Dirtbag got away and many of our soldiers are injured. Are you alright?"

"I'm fine, Sideswipe. Right now we need to turn our attention to our wounded, and regroup."


	4. Deconstruction Site

_Decepticon _

_Detroit City, Michigan_

The modified Lamborghini Aventador made its way through an intact part of the city, past abandoned shops, cafeterias and other empty buildings. The engine dulled and the car transformed, into Lockdown. The streets were eerily silent, and Lockdown looked over his shoulder before going into the alley way next to him. There, he picked up communications from Starscream.

"Lockdown! Is the data damaged? Are you functional?" Starscream asked, full of false concern, anxiety and impatience. Lockdown sighed.

"I'm here, Starscream, the data's fine."  
>"Then <em>why <em>have you stopped MOVING?!"  
>"Just basking in the moment." Lockdown said sarcastically, unimpressed at Starscream's impatience.<p>

There was a long pause, where Lockdown was sure either Starscream had died or forgotten about him. However, this thought was short-lived when the enraged Starscream spoke again.

"You IDIOT! That data's worth more than you are...send it immediately!" Lockdown paused.  
>"Calm down. Transmitting now." Lockdown began transmissions through the secure Decepticon circle. He wondered where Starscream had disappeared to, perhaps back to Siberia to update his leader, Megatron.<p>

There was a longer pause at the other end of communications, and then Starscream spoke again, this time with a tone of amusement. "Hmmm...the Autobots have taken over an abandoned Sector 7 facility in the Pacific...I believe you've given us our next target."

Lockdown extended and retracted his hook. "And to think you doubted me." He said. He would have to wait for the human air transport to arrive before continuing his objectives. The Decepticons had begun collaborating with like-minded humans since the execution of the Fallen in Egypt. Lockdown did not love or hate working with the humans: he just found it necessary at the time. And he knew, in the future, he would have to work for them once again.

* * *

><p><em>Kuril Islands, North Pacific between Russia and Canada<em>

Lockdown had parachuted from the air transport and landed safely on one of the many dusty roads leading to the deconstruction site. He could see in every direction ash grey or red brick buildings, and cranes, some fallen apart. Starscream had given him next to zero intel of what to do, only that Mirage, an Autobot, had been situated to patrol here.

Lockdown transformed and drove down the road. There were no signs, no traffic indicators, or anything to say it was not a dusty track, but a road. Lockdown entered a courtyard, surrounded with piles of rubble and a damaged crane, but no sign of his quarry. He shifted back into vehicle mode and drove down yet another rough, dusty track, entering a courtyard surrounded on all sides by intact grey buildings. Lockdown pinpointed a powerplant around two miles away from his current position, and then ground to a halt, wheels screeching.

Across the courtyard, in front of a set of concrete pipes, sat a red-burgundy Ferrari 458 Italia. Lockdown watched the other car carefully, but it didn't activate or transform. Lockdown transformed and extended a hook. "Starscream, come in. I need intel on Mirage, and I need it now!"

Silence. Lockdown suddenly kicked off, slamming his hook into the nearest building and ripping debris off it. The bricks clattered at his feet and he punched with his left handed, being whipped into fury by Starscream's ignorance.

"Looking for me, amico?" Came the unmistakable Italian accent.

Lockdown whipped around to meet one of Mirage's wristblades and be sent sliding backwards. Lockdown felt Energon run down his face for a second time and glared at Mirage. The Autobot had burgundy armour and assassin-like face armour with twin wristblades on both arms. Lockdown extended his hook for the fight, which never came.

Mirage transformed with a piercing sound, whirling into Ferrari form, Italian number plate appearing in the back as he accelerated away. Lockdown roared and jumped into his alternate form and gave chase, dodging the plasma grenades. Dust was kicked up from the road as Autobot fought bounty hunter in Stealth Form.

Bullets and missiles were exchanged as both battled on the edge of a cliff. In the dust and confusion, Mirage disappeared down another road towards a deconstruction site with a massive crane.

Lockdown found his bearings and one again gave pursuit, too enraged for words. A garbled transmission came from Starscream as Lockdown entered the deconstruction site. "Find out wh-t you- from -irage."  
>"Shut up." Lockdown growled, forward rolling out of vehicle form. As far as he was aware, he was the only Decepticon on the island. No sign of the other assets Starscream had mentioned.<p>

Mirage was waiting for him, arms folded. Lockdown stopped dead just a few metres away from the Autobot warrior, raising the assault rifle.

Mirage just disappeared, faded into nothingness right before him, and Lockdown lowered the assault rifle. _He wasn't even sure Mirage existed. _He did not noticed the air shift behind him until Mirage reappeared and sliced him through the back with a wristblade. "Amico, that's why they call me Mirage, huh?"

Lockdown was getting tired of Mirage's self-assured attitude to fighting, and his ridiculous accent. The Autobot seemed too quick to be Cybertronian, but Lockdown had known Cybertronians who were quicker. He had even been taught by one of these agile Cybertronians a long time ago, so he knew how to dodge, parry, and land unexpected blows on his enemy.

Mirage fought for the higher ground, disappearing into thin air again. Lockdown looked around in frustration, heading twisting this way and that. He had killed or debilitated the Autobot leader, and yet he couldn't take down one soldier. It brought shame upon him. He heard soft footfalls up the ramp onto a semi-deconstructed building behind the crane, and followed. Mirage materialized with his back turned to him, and Lockdown rushed him.

Mirage jumped as Lockdown's hook passed under him, and as he came down again, Lockdown drew his assault rifle one handed and shot into Mirage's armour. The Autobot was sent sprawling to the floor and Lockdown lowered the gun in victory, as smoke rose from his adversary's armour and his weapon. "You're finished, Mirage." Lockdown said with a tone of finality in his voice, raising the hook.

"Lockdown, extract what information you can from the Autobot nuisance, and then end his pathetic life. Make sure you get rid of him, one less imbecile to worry about!" Starscream warned over the communication, before it went dead.

Lockdown seized the down Autobot and slammed him into the crumbling wall nearby, wrapping the hook around his neck. Mirage extended one of his wristblades, and Lockdown snapped in and slammed it into the Autobot's right shoulder joint, leaving him suspended. Lockdown broke the other wristblade for good measure as Mirage bled Energon.

"Now, Autobot, tell me about this island. Who is here and what are you up to?"  
>"This is our main base of operations...after you and your <em>sporcizia <em>destroyed Detroit." Mirage snarled.

Lockdown ripped armour off Mirage and brutally slammed the hook into the Autobot's face, nearly shattering the optics. Mirage groaned, and glared at Lockdown. "Who are your assets?" Lockdown said forcefully.

Mirage didn't answer. "Who are your assets?" Lockdown roared.  
>"Optimus Prime, Bumblebee, Ironhide, Ratchet...they will all tear you apart after you're finito with me."<br>"Who else?"  
>"Who do you think, friend?" Mirage's optimistic attitude was unnerving and annoying the bounty hunter.<br>"Who ELSE?!"  
>"Look behind you."<p>

Lockdown turned around to see a red Autobot with a tank turret for a chest. Only one name came to mind: Warpath. The Autobot walked forward, heavy footfalls making the unstable building shake. Lockdown glared back at Mirage, who smiled a broken smile. Lockdown scanned the armour, and left the Autobot for dead, jumping down onto the ground that Warpath also walked upon.

"You better turn and run, Decepticon fool. You can't face me. I'm Warpath, you are just irrelevant."  
>"I am no Decepticon, and I am more than relevant: I am your end."<p>

Warpath immediately detected the threat and fired a round from his chest cannon. The shot hit Lockdown dead centre and threw him back, burning pieces of his armour trailing away from him. Lockdown hit the floor on his back, got up. and transformed, not giving Warpath the chance to pursue or attack again. He had received what he came for, and had a new target.

* * *

><p>Lockdown stopped in the shadow of several old industrial buildings, one of which was marked by a faded and scarred Sector 7 insignia. Sector 7 was the predecessor of NEST, who had been based in the Hoover Dam in Colorado. They had found and imprisoned the Decepticon leader Megatron in his Cybetronian form, and later the Allspark, a giant cube that was a life and memory essence of all Cybertronians. Sector 7 wrongly imprisoned Bumblebee, but was later freed as S7 decided to work with the Autobots.<p>

S7 was shut down for many reasons: for its secrecy, for its methods of operation, and mostly for its incompetence. From this, NEST had been formed, an alliance with the Autobots to hunt down any remaining Decepticons on Earth. This seemed to succeed, as many Decepticons, even those who held no intend to kill, were hunted down and executed. Demolishor, Sideways, Override, Duststorm, Tankor, Dead End, Dirt Boss, Ransack, Reverb, Brakedown, Skystalker, Divebomb, Brimstone, Crankstart, Oil Pan, Sunspot, Chopsaw.

Depthcharge and Sonar had managed to escape, and they were offline, in stasis lock, plus a multitude of other Decepticon assets who had renamed themselves to avoid detection through communications. But the Autobots had not gone without losses. Arcee and Elita 1 had been killed at the battle of Egypt, while a number of other Autobots went 'missing', namely Springer, Knock Out, Rollbar, Dune Runner, Nightbeat, Wideload, Skystalker, Sandstorm, Trailcutter and Tracker.

Lockdown transformed and reported back into Starscream. "I have secured the information you needed, Starscream."  
>"Good, Lockdown. Hmm...it seems there is a big facility on the other side of the island, beyond the deconstruction site you're situated in. Sector 7 dug in for an extended stay before being shut down. Prime and his inner circle are here...but no mention of the <em>other <em>assets."

"You'd better add Warpath to the list. And next time, send someone either expendable or heavily armoured." Lockdown warned. Starscream laughed evenly through the comm.  
>"Report back to these coordinates, stay in vehicle form. Our army will be mobilized...after Crowbar completes his next mission."<br>"And if he doesn't?"  
>"Then you will be called in. Starscream out!"<p> 


	5. Hostile Territory

_Decepticon_

_Kuril Islands, North Pacific_

The unmarked CME7 police car moved along the empty, silent, grey docks. Crowbar and his fellow team of Dreads had been advised to gain new forms, but they agreed when the time was right. Crowbar had received the news of Dreadwind and Dirtbag's demise: the other team had been situated in South America to capture and fight Bumblebee and Sideswipe. Obviously, the mission had quickly unravelled, but it had succeeded in at least being a diversion. That left Hooligan, Crowbar's counterpart.

He had learned that Hooligan, Barricade and Soundwave were en route to the island on a freight ship, along with their small army. When the opportunity arose, they would assault the on the island and

Crowbar transformed, sensing an incoming transmission. "Crowbar, report!" the Dread gazed into the slightly overcast Pacific sky with his four sinister optics, and his mandibles clicked. "I'm still on patrol, Starscream."

"Be advised. Optimus Prime is there on the island. If you encounter him, pursue and destroy him."

Crowbar's dreadlocks shifted. "The strongest of the Autobots...I like the sound of this." He shifted back into vehicle form, and drove off into a maze of tall grey abandoned buildings, towards the docks.

* * *

><p>More than an hour later, of driving around this sector of the island, Crowbar found nothing. He was faintly annoyed at the fact Starscream had blatantly lied to him, or perhaps been misinformed. He had destroyed several buildings in an attempt to draw out Autobots, but none had so far appeared. He turned and took the road back to the docks, awaiting the freight ship.<p>

He remembered that Lockdown had boasted about killing or eliminating the Autobot leader back in Detroit, but obviously either Starscream or Lockdown had been misinformed.

Soon, a big Swedish freight ship appeared on the horizon, steadily making its way towards the island. Crowbar hid in deep shadow between two of the abandoned dockyard buildings and watched. He saw no fellow Decepticons on the deck of the ship, just humans working. Crowbar wondered if they were collaborators or just oblivious to the danger in their vessel, their hidden passengers.

The freight ship pulled into the dredged channel and several of the gangways lowered. The humans on board must have known there were no humans visible on the island and the place was abandoned, as they had followed no protocol. Crowbar continued waiting, crouched invisibly within the deep shadows.

The cranes on-board the ship sprung into action, being secured to freight containers and lifted. The chains connecting the freight containers strained as they ascended. Crowbar tried to listen in on what the humans said, but they spoke a different language so just waited. Several of the containers were lowered, and Crowbar comprehended what one human was saying.

"Mr Gould is going get his cars quite ruined. He should have asked us to dock at a different sector."  
>"This voyage is nothing short of random." Another human said, and then added, "Who would use a car in this godawful place?"<p>

Crowbar retreated further into the shadows. _Gould, he knew that name_. The last container lowered and hit the dock with a resounded thud. The Autobots must have thought that the ship had just made a recovery stop, but he knew Autobot soldiers would come out to check. _Gould, Dylan Gould. The human collaborator with the Decepticons. _

The freight ship slowly pulled out from the dock and was soon on its way into the horizon, towards Alaska. Crowbar walked into the light in all fours, using old cargo boxes as cover. When he was sure it was safe, he stood up and approached the freight containers. "Starscream, Decepticon force designated Dreadspike has arrived." No reply, only static.

Crowbar tapped on the box as a signal, and stepped back. It was then the freight container exploded into metallic fragments from a blast inside, raining down the torn metal. Soundwave walked out, lowering the plasma Skorpion and walking past Crowbar. "Opposition mobilizing. Prepare defensive positions." Was all the greeting Crowbar received from Soundwave.

A Ford Mustang Saleen S281E black and white Detroit police car pulled out from the wreckage and transformed, into the sinister shape of Barricade. The Decepticon interrogator said nothing, but just unlocked several of the other freight containers. On the white door details on his arms, could be read the motto "To punish and enslave..."

Dark vehicle forms drove from out of the containers, including two CME7 police cars that transformed into Crankcase and Hooligan, and then another unmarked Humvee which didn't convert: Hatchet.

From these freight vehicles emerged an army of black Chevrolet Suburbans and unmarked Humvees: an army of Enforcers and Assaulters. Crowbar did not care to count how many, because his attention was drawn by the winged shape of Laserbeak far above. The last two freight containers remained intact, until Barricade attached a silencer to his plasma cannon and fired, tearing the freight container open.

Within was seen the remains of Sideways, or rather, an Audi R8 sundered into two pieces. Soundwave loomed over the remains, scanning it. The piercing glow of the sonic disks on his arms and optics nearly blinded Crowbar. Alongside lay the remains of one of Soundwave's components, named Ravage, and the body of Long Haul. Back in the Siberian Decepticon base, the severed head of Long Haul had lived to become Igor, Megatron's only companion.

Barricade didn't move to open the other container: inside lay the remains of the Constructicons Mixmaster had tried and failed to revive. Soundwave turned to give his orders to the many soldiers, and they all moved out in vehicle form, leaving only Barricade, the Dreads, and Laserbeak. The Cybertronian hawk rested on Soundwave's left arm, cackling to himself. The scene fell short of demonic, macabre.

Soundwave was about to give the order to move to defensive position when their attention was drawn to the skies above as the sound of thunder ripped through the atmosphere. An F-22 raptor which could only be Starscream dropped furiously through the clouds and transformed, slamming into the ground in front of Soundwave. All Decepticons fell except the communication's officer. Even Laserbeak flew away, startled.

Starscream was enraged. "Soundwave, you idiot!" He spat coolant. He was always this angry after confronting Megatron. Megatron never respected Starscream's efforts: each one of these he saw as a failure. He tried to tell his traitorous second-in-command he was lucky to be alive, in which Starscream would return with a colder reply about how one day he would be the leader. This often led to Megatron striking Starscream or severely beating him.

The other Decepticons picked themselves up, angry at Starscream's methods of arrival. Barricade made to speak, but Soundwave stopped him and let Starscream continue spitting his rage. "This is a covert operation, you ingrates! You have just been detected by the Autobots! I ordered to stay UNSEEN!"

Soundwave glared back at Starscream. His only movement was the circulating motion of his optics. "Conflict was imminent, unavoidable. My action should have been appreciated."  
>"I am in charge <em>here<em>, Soundwave! Thanks down to your incompetence, I will have to do it myself! Retreat to these coordinates, and WAIT for my signal."

Starscream gunned his afterburners and ascended away from the assembled group of Decepticons, still furious. Soundwave watched his adversary shift into the F-22 and disappear over the horizon.


	6. Breaking and Entering

_Decepticon_

_Kuril Islands, North Pacific_

Starscream dropped out of the sky towards the helicopter pad, transforming as he descended. He landed dead centre of the H-pad, and looked upon the slightly scarred visage of Lockdown, half-obscured by shadows. It was night, but the sky was close to the light of day.

"Lockdown! Megatron needs you to create another diversion."  
>"I'm listening."<br>"Inside the Autobot base, go and destroy their communication arrays as loudly and messily as possible."  
>"With pleasure."<p>

Lockdown stepped out of the shadows, examining his hook in the strange light. Far on all sides, rose the walls of the Autobot base, or at least, the entrance. The walls were high but were devoid of a ceiling, leaving the base open to air assault.

"This is part of bringing Shockwave back, right? Is he really as big and as bad as they say?" Lockdown said sarcastically. He knew exactly who Shockwave was, although he had never encountered him face to face. He was testing Starscream once again.

"Do not concern yourself with Shockwave. You are to focus on the task at hand. That is ALL!" Starscream said curtly. Lockdown found his reaction quite interesting. "Fine, I'm on it!" He said, disappearing back into the shadows. But he couldn't help but notice the expression in Starscream's optics.

Starscream noted Lockdown observing him, and said "Don't fail, or Megatron will have you terminated." Lockdown laughed to himself inside his thought sensors and materialized back into the dark.

* * *

><p>Dawn was less than an hour away. He would have to work quickly to disable the several communication dishes scattered through this sector of the island. He did not know where the other Decepticons were, but for what it was worth and what he had observed, he did not care.<p>

He thought of both Autobots and Decepticons as inferior, and served them so they would in turn serve him. In the end, this meant he would achieve his own ends. But he did not risk contact with his ship, it would be too dangerous.

The first radar dish was to the left of the H-pad where Starscream had landed and given him his new orders. He detected many Autobots coming his way, among them an important Autobot. Lockdown broke cover and ran for the radar array, looking over his shoulder. "You, Decepticon, stop there!" one Autobot yelled. He heard a chorus of voices.

"We have a D-con, put him down!" Another Autobot said, loading his plasma rifle. Shots rang out but Lockdown use his hook to climb our of the line of fire. He heard plasma casings dropping along the floor and loomed over the Autobots in the yard below. "Do I look or fight like a Decepticon?"

They turned to fire but he was gone. A split second later, the Cybertronian hook on cable sailed down and hooked an Autobot, lifting him up. With a yell he was gone. The other three Autobots looked around in consternation, looking for the elusive Lockdown and their comrade. "Jolt, we need assistance, in Air Sector 02. Unknown target."

Lockdown stopped in the shadow of his target: the radar emplacement. Slowly, he placed carbon-nitro explosive on the base of the radar, and retreated. He remembered his mission was to destroy the emplacements as loudly and messily as possible.

He made his presence known in the centre of the H-pad, and one of the Autobots noticed and yelled "There!" As soon as this was spoken, the radar burst into a bright explosion, jolting the ground beneath them. The explosion engulfed the Autobots, breaking them into pieces. Lockdown took in the sight of burning chassis and air, and transformed, heading further into the base by using the shadows.

He entered another small yard filled with grey secured freight containers. Another emplacement lay nearby, and he hacked into it, listening.

"The Decepticons are mobilizing...Optimus, we need to take caution...no sign or sighting of Megatron...just using his soldiers as puppets...he is up to something."

He tapped into the thread that continuously mentioned the Decepticon Leader. From what he heard, several of Optimus Prime's inner circle were discussing something. _So Prime hadn't perished after all..._

"Optimus, we have no information on Operation: Pillar, but we traced Soviet articles back to the Tunguska event and the explosion in a place known as Chernobyl. There is also mention north of a place known as Yekaterinburg. We should follow it up."  
>"No Ratchet. I know what it leads to, we have a secure position here. We nearly lost Sideswipe in South America, we cannot allow this to happen again. Only when we have intel may we wake our move."<p>

Lockdown disconnected, uninterested in what was happening. He ripped his hook out of the radar emplacement and placed charges, not wishing for his signal to be traced through the network. The radar disintegrated into burning metal behind him and alarms arose.

One more radar emplacement came down, and then another, taken out by explosives. Black smoke torrents rose up in the skies above the grey walls of the Pacific Autobot Base. He only had three more radar dishes to take down, but as he returned to the main corridor, the walls behind him exploded, and through the explosions came a blue Chevrolet Volt, chassis open to reveal blasting plasma-electro chainguns.

Lockdown made to convert, but the static orbs slammed in his armour and he was jettisoned through the air. Sparks showered through his vision as he connected with the wall and rolled to his feet. Behind him, the Chevrolet Volt spun around, tires screeching, and was jettisoned into the air. The parts shifted and turned, revealing the humanoid shape of Jolt.

The Autobot said nothing; Lockdown had hacked Decepticon intel and found out that Mixmaster had _killed _Jolt, before attacking Ironhide, to his own end. But the intel was once again wrong, or maybe Lockdown didn't understand Decepticon Cybertronian as much as he should. The blue and silver shape of Jolt vaulted overhead and his electro-whips energized in a blinding blue.

Lockdown barely had time to raise his arms before the electro-energon whips bit into his armour, tearing pieces off in a piercing blue explosion. Lockdown raised his hook, stunned by the fast attack of the Autobot. His other hand became the Spark Extractor. He fought the whirling electric blue whirlwind that was Jolt: the Autobot was silent.

Jolt did not call for back-up or taunt Lockdown, he was focused on terminated the bounty hunter for good. Lockdown ducked as one of the whips slashed through his shoulder. He tried to attack with the hook, and missed. Jolt got behind the bounty hunter and slashed again, ripping armour apart. Lockdown grunted, sent to the floor with the force of the blow.

He was bleeding Energon from several deep wounds, but he got back up and continued his defensive. "You just made a _big _mistake." He snarled, but coolant spilled from his mouth and Jolt back-handed him with his whip. This time, he caught Jolt in the face and pulled him down too. Lockdown kicked him back and back-handed him with the hook, so hard that one of the optics flickered out.

Jolt hit the floor hard, blue armour chipping and cracking with force of the impact. Lockdown lunged with the Spark Extractor which hit the wall hard and bounced off, giving Jolt a chance to whip the back of Lockdown's legs. Lockdown fell onto one knee, and hooked Jolt, slamming him into the nearest wall. A whip cracked and Lockdown brought the hook down on Jolt's chest plate, exposing the spark.

The glowing blue orb there was his target. Jolt whirled into an electric frenzy, sending bolts through Lockdown's armour. The voltage seemed to disconnect Lockdown from all of his sensors and he stumbled around blindly. He raised the Spark Extractor in defence.

As his optics flickered back online, the Spark Extractor fell out of his grip with Jolt at the other end, the extractor embedded into his spark. Blue lines ran through his armour as the light in his optics faded. Lockdown staggered, and righted himself, pieces of broken armour clanging across the floor.

He extended his hand around the handle of the extractor and tore Jolt's spark free from the chassis, trailing the wires that had once been veins which had transported the lifeforce through Jolt's empty chassis. Lockdown raised the extractor slowly, to inspect his trophy, glancing down at the dead Autobot dismissively, and then got into contact with Starscream as a new set of alarms rose.

"I encountered and terminated Jolt. That should be enough to distract the Autobots, but I'm not in a fit state for any other errands. I have collected his spark."  
>There was a signature pause.<br>"Not to worry, Lockdown. You have done a great honour, in my name. Retreat to a safe location, go into cryo-stasis, and before Operation : Pillar is placed into full effect, you shall have your orders...concerning Ratchet and other specific Autobot targets. You will work with the organization designated Cemetery Wind. Starscream out!"

Lockdown shut off communications and looked behind him, seeing many Autobots massing around Jolt's body. The alarms slowed down and went silent, as he stored the spark inside his damaged armour. With his work done, he escaped into a dark area full of freight containers, parts of devastated armour falling off behind him. He would not look the same again.

* * *

><p>Barricade and Hooligan waited, just on top of the walls above the base. Far below, on the outside walls of the base where the shadows of the army of Dreads, Vehicons and the leaders. They were waiting for the signal, to launch the devastating attacking on the base. Crowbar and the other asset, Lockdown, had been busy taking out Autobot communications and detections.<p>

From the dark skies far above, came the familiar shape of Starscream, barreling down on the abandoned Sector 7, now turned Autobot base. The eruption of missiles filled the sky, bearing down on the walls of the facility. Streams of white travelled from the blue heavens, and moments later, the lightning tore open the walls and the flood of darkness descended down the walls, through the rubble.

The F-22 flipped out of orbit, shifting, and Starscream landed on a tower, exclaiming his orders of destruction as the sunrise lit the horizon. "Kill them! Kill them all!"


	7. Grand Larceny

_Decepticon_

_Kuril Islands, North Pacific_

Soundwave ran towards the massive stack of blue crates, glowing from within. It was obvious that what the crate was made of was Cybertronian: Sector 7 must have secured the equipment from drop-points around the Earth and transported it to this 'secure' facility in Kuril Islands. They must have forgotten about it when S7 was shut down, and then reactivated when the Autobots came.

The Decepticon could hear the staccato sound of weapons, explosions, and shouting in Cybertronian and English, and engines. Over all this he could occasionally hear the sound of Ratchet or Ironhide talking over the speakers. They were searching for someone, or something, that had damaged radar emplacements in another part of the base, which was immense. Luckily, Soundwave had carved a map of the place and could find his way easily.

He had found a transport elevator leading down into He looked over his shoulder, and ran towards another set of Cybertronian crates: there were many of these. His communications system activated and through it, Starscream spoke.

"Soundwave! Have you infiltrated the base yet?"  
>"Affirmative." Soundwave was annoyed, at the volume of Starscream's voice, and by Starscream himself.<br>"You'd better stay quiet! If you don't find the MechTech data in that base, Megatron will be sorely displeased."

Soundwave knew that Starscream only cared about saving is own neck. He feared Megatron, while Soundwave idolized him. He knew Starscream more than the traitorous, scheming Decepticon knew himself.

"Agreed. Your radio silence is appreciated."  
>"Oh-I, ah, yes of course. Radio silence would be best. I..." Starscream's concentration lapsed and deep inside his thought sensors, Soundwave laughed at Starscream's idiocy.<br>"Starscream out!" The second-in-command snapped, realizing he had drifted off. Soundwave shook his head slowly, and transformed into SUV form.

* * *

><p>He was working to locate the computer which held the MechTech information. Soundwave knew nothing about MechTech, only that it was software which upgraded weapons. He saw no point in this, but if it was Megatron's bidding, he would carry it out to the full.<p>

The insides of the base were made up of high, wide corridors which were broken up by the rooms of Cybertronian crates, each room lit by either massive ceiling lights or the blue glow of the crates. Some corridors led into pitfalls or unfinished passageways, where the walls were made of cracking earth.

It was not long before the sparse Autobot defence force reappeared. They opened fire, idiotically, on the crates, and Soundwave came out of his form and jumped onto the exploded crates, opening fire. One of the Autobots fell while the smaller Protectobots ran backwards and then away, afraid of the almost demonic presence of the Decepticon.

Soundwave dropped down and transformed back into SUV form, travelling through the flames. The Autobots were in full retreat, allowing Soundwave somewhat clear path to his location, miles inside the Autobot facility. Still there was the sound of explosions and commotion above, and still Ratchet spoke over the communication's system.

"All Autobots, fall back! Protect the mainframe!" Soundwave transformed and approached a mass of computers, causing two of the small Autobots to retreat away, intimidated. He slammed his left fist into a mass of cables to the left and then typed on the keyboard with his right, temporarily cutting off any sound of Ratchet's voice or Autobot communications.

With the annoyance silenced, Soundwave continued further. There were more and more crates, piled up to the ceiling, and all the walls were eroding Sector 7 symbols. And still, above and behind were the sound of plasma and Energon explosions. The army of Dreads and Vehicons were making their way further and further into the base, all for the sake of diverting the Autobots from Soundwave's progress.

The ceiling above cracked and the angular shapes of two Enforcers dropped down, surrounding Soundwave. He watched as they descended into a predatory crouch and seemed to become invisible to Soundwave's optic-sensors. He had seen this before, on Cybertron. The Seekers had founded a special way of bending light to make an object disappear.

The shapes disappeared and Soundwave continued his drive through the abandoned halls of the base. More gunfire, this time the sound of Autobot weapons, directly above. Soundwave paused, and waited for the fight to fade out.

And then he entered a room with a ceiling held up by four pillars. He had located his objective: the room was filled with two rows of the Cybertronian crates, wires formed a network across the ceiling, some hanging on the floor precariously. At the far end of the room were blue flickering monitors, and Soundwave's optics rested on his objective: the computer dead centre of the monitors.

He walked over, across this abandoned hall which he had thought to be heavily guarded. But it was completely empty; Starscream, or rather Megatron's diversionary plan had worked. Everything above had gone silent, Soundwave placed his hands in the outlets on either side of the computer and sections of his armour moved and shifted as tentacle-like sensors plunged into the network, and the wires above connected to his silver armour.

Images bounced through his optics, images of data and images of secret government bases, those of all the governments of Earth. Of all the lies and delusions, of the history between Cybertron and Earth. The Maximals and Predacons had a great battle on the plains of the Earth, long before the humans came into existence.

He shifted through the levels of data, terminated useless information, knocking aside firewalls with ease and disabling security in microseconds, until he found the cache of information he had tirelessly searched for. It was there in its complete form, a new experimental project called MechTech, created by the Autobot scientist Wheeljack.

He began the download, having disabled everything and anything that could have prevented him. The information drained into a compound within his system and locked it down. With the MechTech information stored safely within his armour, he disconnected the mass of wires and the tentacles retreated back into his armour.

His attention was brought behind as the burning chassis of two Enforcers slammed into the monitors to his right and shattered. This was followed by a hail of missiles as a black GMC Topkick pickup with it's plating open slid into the room and stopped, the throaty engines dying down. The parts shifted into the towering form of Ironhide. "Hold it right there, punk."

Soundwave walked casually over to stand parallel to his adversary. Ironhide had drawn both of his Heavy Iron Cannons and were aiming them at the floor. "It is illogical to begin a conflict. I hold the information of the MechTech, and in confronting me you would damage and lose it. Stand aside."

Ironhide made no move to step aside; his piercing blue optics were locked onto Soundwave's red. It was a stand-off, Ironhide's bronze fingers moving slowly towards the triggers of the Heavy Iron 2.0 cannons. Soundwave stood motionless, no sign of a weapon in either hand.

Suddenly, Ratchet's voice came over the intercom. "To all Autobots, do not engage Soundwave. Do not engage." Soundwave's optics drifted to where the speaker hung from one of the cables overhead, and then back to the Autobot Weapon's officer. Ironhide hesitated a moment, and then lowered the weapons. Soundwave did not take his optics off Ironhide, as he walked towards the exit passage, the blue light illuminating his armour eerily.

Once more, Soundwave became the Mercedes SUV, and left. His work here was done, now to extract the information to surface and leave. The transport elevator was beyond a stack of crates, these had Japanese markings on them. He accelerated and smashed right through them, obliterating them and the machinery within.

* * *

><p>The roar of jet engines filled the dawn skies as Starscream bore down on the air defenses of the island, all of which were pounding away. Torrents of flak and missiles filled his path, but still Starscream accelerated, returning fire with a stream of minigun fire and a flood of missiles.<p>

The entire mountainside of artillery seemed to disintegrate into orange and black as the missiles connected with the sound of thunder. An avalanche began, the machinery and broken Autobots descending in the landslide. Starscream turned and took up speed into the rising sun, circling around the island, the roar of his engines mixing with the sound of the Earth collapsing below.


	8. Freedom Run

_Decepticon_

_Kuril Islands, North Pacific_

Soundwave emerged from a shuttered exit, escaping through the tropical foliage. Above him, Crowbar jumped down into a crouch. He had been given specific orders to meet the Communication's Officer outside. They both sprinted into the next small tropical canyon, trying to blend their footfalls in with the faint rumbling of the volcano in the centre of the island, far above them.

Laserbeak swooped down and landed on Soundwave's arm, and he raised a can to stop Crowbar. Rather than turn to address the Dread, Soundwave kept his gaze forward. "Is your directive clear?"

"You need to get out of here, I need to run interference. Simple."

Soundwave turned finally to address the Decepticon assassin. "Maintain vigilance. Bumblebee, has been sighted nearby." Crowbar suddenly rose up to his full-height. If he could smile, he would have.

"Really? I despise that shiny little twerp. This just gets better and better." And then Laserbeak snarled lightly and hovered above the talking Decepticons as a sound sensor-shaking sound caught their attention. It came from the topless mountain far above. The palm trees swayed and bent as the rumbling ceased. This was the sign for both Soundwave and Crowbar to carry out the objectives.

* * *

><p>Crowbar waited, crouched on a small outcrop like a predator, his dreadlocks still and his body hidden by foliage. His four optics slowly locked onto the vehicle form of the retreating Soundwave, and then his attention drew back to road in the canyon. Smoke still rose from the destroyed ex-Sector 7 facility, and Crowbar picked up the sound of the voices of Autobot soldiers.<p>

He could pick up the sound of Ironhide's voice, and his armour and dreadlocks rattled as his thoughts turned to those of revenge. But he turned his attention onto a 2011 Chevrolet Concept Camaro, brightly finished in yellow with black sport stripes. Crowbar's mandibles clacked at Bumblebee's arrogant: he was a magnet to Decepticon attack.

He had heard stories about the Autobot scout: Bumblebee had defeated many great Decepticon warriors both in Cybertron and on Earth, through use of what many deemed 'underhand' tactics. Bumblebee had beaten up Barricade badly, and had terminated Brawl, Rampage, and many other Decepticon warriors in the battle of Egypt.

Crowbar was determined to put an end to the annoying mute Autobot once and for all. And now was his chance. He sprung from the cover of the tropical foliage and landed in Bumblebee's path, crouched aggressively.

Bumblebee seemed to decelerate and then stop, undergoing the conversion process from car into robot form. Crowbar half-expected the yellow Autobot to flee, or go into Stealth Form, or even ram Crowbar in vehicle form. Crowbar appraised his adversary; he would not underestimate the scout as the others had.

Bumblebee stared back at him with those wide blue optics, not at all fazed by Crowbar's dark and angular appearance. Time passed and Crowbar let out a guttural growl. In response, Bumblebee raised his fists in preparation to fight. He spoke through his radio, switching to different channels or quotes every few words. "Bring it-ON...punk!"

Crowbar launched himself into the air and tried to land on Bumblebee from the air. His optics caught a blur of yellow and black as he hit the floor. Bumblebee was on his side, attacking in a breakdancing style, spinning on his hands and kicking. Crowbar just matched his speed, effortlessly parrying Bumblebee's feet and fists.

Crowbar, tiring of the progress, dashed back and extended his wristblades. Bumblebee remained on one hand, like a skilled breakdancer holding a skilled position. The tense stance held, Crowbar crouched back with his right hand raised.

Bumblebee broke and launched himself into the air as Crowbar pounced. They connected above the ground and Crowbar's blade snapped. They both hit the ground, earth cascading, and Crowbar kicked Bumblebee back. The Autobot gazed at the Dread, and then transformed. Crowbar growled and went into pursuit, at first in his E7 police car form.

But then he converted and started sprinting, just getting faster and faster, his glare on the vehicular form of Bumblebee. The Autobot made no move to try and escape or accelerate, which encouraged Crowbar to up his own speed.

And then, Bumblebee broke and transformed, anchoring himself into the ground. Crowbar tackled him before he had a chance to move and both hit the canyon wall, destroying a group of crates. Crowbar lay in wait beneath the debris as Bumblebee sprung up and waited. The Autobot scout showed sounds of confusion, his cannon raised and spinning, ready to discharge orange plasma energy.

Crowbar snarled and sprung forward, slicing the yellow armour of Bumblebee. The Autobot spoke in very garbled Cybertronian and Crowbar realized with cruel amusement that his vocal processor was still severely damaged from the time Megatron had tortured him on Cybertron. Bumblebee fired his cannon and Crowbar formed into a ball as he spun over it. Hitting the floor, he watched Bumblebee convert again and accelerate away in search of Soundwave.

Crowbar transformed, shifting with sharp sounds as the wheels realigned and his head descended into the bonnet with his dreadlocks becoming the numerous pipes and engine compartments. But this time he did not complete the transformation: he was going to slaughter Bumblebee from his Stealth Form.

Numerous machine guns flipped out from his hood and the wheels extended outwards on the frames. He was gaining on the escaping Autobot with a vengeance, slowly zeroing in on his kill. To his right was the high rock of the atoll, and the intense shadow of the volcano, and to his left was the churning surface of the Pacific ocean, lit red by the morning sunlight.

His machine guns blazed over the sound of the revving engines, tearing apart the rock and the tropic foliage. Two Autobot heavy vehicles appeared from the tattered vegetation and fired streams of missiles at Crowbar's direction. Crowbar swerved easily around the shots and his front two chainguns formed into a missile launcher.

He fired, hitting the first vehicle in the rear. The Autobot failed to transform as his vehicle form seemed to burst into flame and smoke, but the second bigger Autobot transformed and the missile launcher formed on his left arm. The Autobot continued firing, each time missing the Dread. The useless shot plunged into the ocean below. Crowbar realized he had driven to close to the edge, as his front left wheel left ground momentarily.

He swerved, wheels retracting as he became his full vehicle form. To him, the Autobot soldier was nothing but a distraction. Dust kicked up behind him and he saw through forward sensors than the Autobot was still on the run. The chassis broke apart and suddenly Crowbar was sprinting, dreadspikes in his hands.

The Autobot had no time whatsoever to register what was happening before Crowbar slammed the lethal dreadspikes into each shoulder joint, creating a flood of Energon. The dreadlocks flailed like serpents when Crowbar landed, his four crimson optics remaining on his bright and clear target. The soldier had half-turned before the dreadspikes detonated, tearing his arms off.

Bumblebee had somehow emerged onto a lower highway over a lower canyon, and he was getting away. Crowbar glared down at his target as he began to sprint, footfalls heavy and deliberate. He ripped down trees and plants, approaching a canyon, and then he was airborne, over a deep, wide chasm.

He landed and forward-rolled like a Ukrainian acrobat and continued running, becoming closer and closer to the bridge until he could jump. He was jettisoned through the air by the jump, and gravity died as he floated towards the bridge, claws extending.

He hit the bridge with a growl and rose up to his full height, four red optics, black chipped armour, sharp predatory mandibles, flailing dreadlocks and extended claws. This time, Bumblebee had learned his lesson: he was accelerating faster and faster. Crowbar made no room to move: he would kill the Autobot before he had the chance to convert.

A sound made Bumblebee slow and Crowbar turn. It emanated from the centre, _no_, from below the centre of the island. Bumblebee transformed and turned to gaze at the volcano far up above the once-habitable facility, which was now evacuated. Enemies and enmity forgotten, they both waited for the force of nature that was about to happen, a force which neither of them had yet witnessed on Earth.

A flock of birds left the cover of trees. followed by a massive cloud of winged creatures. The world seemed to lapse into silence around them, and a single message escaped from Bumblebee's radio. "Uh-oh."

The mountain seemed to explode, into black. A pillar of white smoke ascended, quickly blackening into choking dust and soot, mirroring the shape of the volcano of its origin. Quickly the sun seemed to die, as the black continued reaching up across the sky. The low sound of earth grating against mantle emanated not just from below, but from above.

And then, molten liquid and rock erupted from the mountain, lighting the darkness of the rock and the sky. Rivers of the liquid surge down the sight and smouldering rocks fell from the sky. They arced overhead, some of the smoke-trailing boulders plunging into the ocean.

The sound was like thunder, amplified ten times so that it sounded as if the world was caving in. Crowbar's gaze was brought up as a smouldering boulder surged through the heavy air towards the bridge. Crowbar took evasive action as the bridge exploded behind him, into burning debris. He did not see Bumblebee move, and neither did he care.

He landed among the burning trees and rose up to his full height, to hear an incoming communication from Starscream. "This is Starscream, retreat to extraction point. The Autobots are disorganized by the cataclysm. This phase is complete..." Crowbar had heard all he needed to hear. He slowly shifted back into his Carbon Motors form, and drove away, through the hail of burning leaves, leaving the shattered bridge behind.

* * *

><p>Starscream spiralled out of the sky and landed in front of Crowbar, Barricade and Soundwave, kicking up dust. Laserbeak flitted around above, before landing on Soundwave's extended arm. Barricade seemed to glare a long time at Starscream: Barricade was against everything Starscream stood for. He had long known the threat posed by Starscream and his treacherous mind.<p>

He had served alongside Starscream from the beginning of the war on Earth. Barricade had been the second in contact with the Autobots on Earth, having tried to extract information from Sam Witwicky. Bumblebee had come straight to the rescue and there had been a brief melee where Barricade had seemed to have the upper hand, only to be disgraceful put down by the Autobot.

Later, Barricade had been given secret orders by Starscream to break away from Brawl and Bonecrusher on the highway into Mission City. Barricade refused but was pushed off the highway by diversionary Autobot tactics as Bonecrusher stupidly and illogically took on Prime against orders. Barricade had to take the long way into Mission City, where he confronted the Autobot leader.

The fight was less one-sided; he was ordered by Starscream to incapacitate the leader and then retreat, but Barricade wanted to get rid of Prime once and for all. After a brief fight, Barricade was told to retreat and let Optimus get on with whatever it was he had gone to do. He believed that Starscream had a change of mind and that the traitor believed Optimus would end Starscream's troubles.

He had watched the battle from vehicle form in the city, hidden just out of site of those who recognized them. First, Brawl taken down by the maimed Bee, and Barricade had carefully resisted the urge to transform and end the Autobot there. And then, from the skies he had witnessed a contingent of F-22's fire on Blackout, the giant, as a human captain fired a weapon from below.

He swore, from that day onward, that Starscream had been among those who had killed Blackout, who had been attempting to aid Megatron in the fight against Optimus Prime, even though Megatron had the upper hand. The upper hand until a second airstrike came in and then Witwicky dealt the final blow with the Allspark, sundering the cube in two and actually managing to kill Megatron.

But now there was a new plan, and a new order, where Starscream was at the disadvantage and Megatron ruled supreme.

"The next phase of the plan is to retreat to our base in Siberia. There, we will lure them to their end. If this fails, then Operation : Pillar will be placed into effect. Find a way of this island and rendezvous back in Yakutsk." With that, Starscream ascended into the dawn, far from the island. There was something he had noticed, flying into the golden disk that was the sun.

The remaining Decepticons changed into their vehicular forms in flurry of metal and soon retreated into the darkness of an old SUV route, heading to the same destination; the Okhotsk dock.


End file.
